Conservatives seize on Landrieu’s ‘I did not vote for Obama’ remark

Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) slipped and told a conservative radio host on Friday that she did not vote for President Obama.

It was a heated exchange and a source close to the Landrieu campaign said the Louisiana Democrat meant that she didn’t vote in lockstep with the president all of the time, but the Black Conservatives Fund seized on the remark and is pushing it out to black voters on Election Day.

On Friday, Landrieu appeared on the morning show of radio host and Tea Party supporter Jeff Crouere, and the two engaged in a combative exchange.

At one point near the end of the interview, Landrieu nearly hung up, but ultimately stayed on and continued with the call.

Crouere argued that Landrieu’s support for Obama and the Affordable Care Act, which he called the president’s signature legislative achievement, had sunk her campaign. 

Landrieu shot back that she was not a rubber stamp for Obama, and argued that ObamaCare was not the president’s signature legislative achievement because he and other liberals wanted a single-payer healthcare system. She said she voted for the Affordable Care Act because she believed it would help Louisianans.

“I voted for the Affordable Care Act, I did not vote for Obama,” she said. “I voted for the Affordable Care Act for Louisiana and that’s the truth.”

The Black Conservatives Fund has spliced those comments into robo-calls going to more than 64,000 likely black voters in the state hoping to put a dent in Landreiu’s near-universal support with African-Americans in Louisiana.

Ali Akbar, senior adviser for the conservative group, argued that Landrieu supports Obama when she’s talking to black voters, and distances herself from him when talking to white voters.

“Did you hear that?,” the voice on the robocall says. “Mary Landrieu talking to a white host different than the way she talks to black voters … she says that she didn’t vote for President Obama. Can you count on her? Deprive the Democrats of your vote today. You can vote, just don’t vote for Mary Landrieu.”

Landrieu faces a tough runoff challenge from Rep. Bill Cassidy and opponents in the race have sought to tie her to the unpopular president. The Black Conservatives Fund has done so before, releasing an ad that shows her hief of staff crowing about how Landrieu voted with Obama 97 percent of the time. 

Voters are at the polls on Saturday in a race that Landrieu trails badly.